What is the Me Too movement?

The Me Too movement is an effort to effect social change, organized primarily

through social media, where it’s often expressed as #MeToo. Originally founded in
2006, it became prominent both online and in the mainstream in late 2017, when
several high-profile actresses opened up about their experiences with sexual
harassment in the film industry.
Since then, the movement has provided a source of solidarity for women from all
backgrounds who have experienced sexual harassment, most often, though not
always, perpetrated by a male colleague.

Me Too movement founder: Tarana Burke

During the early years, Tarana Burke, an American social activist, began to use the
phrase “me too” on the social networking platform Myspace to highlight the
occurrence of sexual harassment, particularly as it targeted women of color.
Burke argues that the Me Too movement works on empowerment through
empathy by showing the world just how common sexual harassment is and by
telling survivors that they aren’t alone — and are supported.

In 2017, actress Alyssa Milano magnified Burke’s rallying cry, turning it into the
popular #MeToo, which continues to trend on social media platforms like Twitter
and Instagram.
Milano’s actions came in response to a number of women in Hollywood opening up
about their own experiences, many involving sexual harassment at the hands of
well-known film producer Harvey Weinstein.

Although Weinstein’s accusers helped to start the movement, and Milano’s use of
Burke’s phrase may have been a powerful catalyst. Today, the movement is still a
source of solidarity for victims of sexual harassment. The fact that tweets and
Instagram posts bearing the hashtag #MeToo are still posted daily serves as a
reminder of just how widespread sexual violence still is.

Sexual harassment defined: What is it?

The Me Too movement is primarily concerned with two types of behavior: sexual
harassment and sexual assault. Although the precise legal definitions of these
terms may vary from state to state, they are generally understood as referring to
specific inappropriate and unwanted sexual behaviors, especially in the workplace
or at school.

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, sexual harassment

consists of “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other
verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.”
Legally, sexual harassment in the workplace is covered under the Civil Rights Act of
1964. However, the behaviors characteristic of sexual harassment are
inappropriate and wrong, no matter where they’re being exhibited.

Examples of sexual harassment in the workplace include scenarios such as:

 One coworker making repeated unwanted sexual advances toward another,

whether they were told to stop or not
 A superior asking for sexual favors from an employee in exchange for some
benefit in the workplace, such as a promotion or a raise
 One employee touching another inappropriately
 A superior threatening an employee based on their unwillingness to engage
in sexual or romantic activity
 Non-physical and non-verbal actions, such as leering, staring, winking,
blowing kisses, and eating or holding food provocatively
Because sexual assault is a form of sexual harassment, all instances of sexual
assault are also instances of sexual harassment. However, not all instances of
sexual harassment are severe enough to qualify as sexual assault.

According to the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN), sexual

assault is characterized by sexual contact of any kind without the consent of the
victim. This could include rape or attempted rape, unwanted sexual touching, or
forcing another person to perform sexual acts against their will.
Sexual assault often includes the use of force, but force doesn’t have to be physical.
It’s still sexual assault if a victim is coerced or manipulated into unwanted sexual
behavior.

Examples of sexual assault include scenarios such as:

 The perpetrator sexually penetrating the victim

 A professor threatening a student’s grades if that student doesn’t engage in
certain sexual behaviors
  Someone touching another person sexually, without that person’s explicit
consent. For example, one person groping another on a crowded train.

Causes of sexual harassment

Violence and Male Self-Perception
The relationship between the sexes in many countries around the world includes a
considerable amount of violence against women.� Data about the United States, for
example, indicate that one out of every ten women are raped or sexually
assaulted during their lives, while more than half of all women living with men have
experienced a battering or similar incident of domestic violence.

Violence by men against women exists in the workplace, as it does in other settings.�
Some scholars, such as Susan Faludi, the author of Backlash: The Undeclared War
Against American Women, suggest that male hostility toward women in the workplace
is closely connected to male attitudes about the �proper role of a man in society.�
Surveys on men�s perception of masculinity, carried out in the U.S., for example,
indicate that the leading definition of masculinity is being �a good provider for his
family.�� Ms. Faludi concludes that some men perceive the �feminist drive for
economic equality� as a threat to their traditional role.� Thus, sexual harassment is
a form of violence perceived as self-protection.

The problem of sexual harassment relates to the roles which are attributed to men and
women in social and economic life, which, in turn, directly or indirectly, affects
women�s positions in the labor market.

The Economics of Women�s Work

Focusing on the economics of men's work and women's work exposes sexual
harassment as a way for the men who harass women to express their resentment and
try to reassert control when they view women as their economic competitors

Despite impediments women face in obtaining employment, there has been a massive
influx of women into the labor force in the 1960s and 1970s, not only in the U.S., but
on a global scale.� Women's entry into the workforce has been prompted by
necessity, since many families cannot make ends meet if the wife and husband do not
both work full-time.�
The second reaction was to exploit the presence of women and make sexual favors
and submission to sexual behaviors conditions of employment, that is to keep from
being fired, demoted, or otherwise adversely affected at work.� Both are forms of
sexual harassment.
Discrimination as a Form Of Workplace Control

Catherine MacKinnon, author of Sexual Harassment of Working Women, was the first
legal scholar to draw attention to the connection between sex discrimination and
sexual harassment:
... [W]omen tend to be in low-ranking positions, dependant upon the approval
and goodwill of male [superiors] for hiring, retention and advancement. Being
at the mercy of male superiors adds direct economic clout to male secual
demands.... It also deprives women of material security and independence which
could help make resistance to unreasonable job pressures practical ...

... [S]exual harassment of women can occur largely because women occupy
inferior job positions and job roles; at the same time, sexual harassment
works to keep women in such positions.

Sexual harassment law in india

The Vishaka Guidelines, handed down by the Supreme Court in 1997, were broadened
in the 2013 Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and
Redressal) Act, which stipulated clearly what constitutes sexual harassment and
established guidelines for what employers must do to protect their employees from the
practice and how to respond to complaints wheresoever they arise (accessible here). 

The legislation, however, has been criticised. Activists have said the law does not go far
enough in dealing with sexual harassment, a complaint the government has been
cognisant of with plans to tighten the legislation. Monica Sakhrani, of the Tata Institute
of Social Sciences, points out the inadequacies, asserting in Economics & Political
Weekly  (EPW) that the Act “restricts the rights of women, dilutes the due process rights,
and reduces the liability of employers.” Issues ranging from a needlessly restrictive
statute of limitations, necessitating that a complaint be filed three to six months after a
transgression has taken place, to “a huge gap in laying down the manner of conducting
the inquiry” are among the manifold problems Sakhrani flags. 

EPW, meanwhile, point to a deeper truth. Legislation is insufficient as a sole tool in

combating sexual harassment and sexual violence more broadly. The root cause of
sexual discrimination and bias within the workforce must be addressed. “It is not simply
enough to strengthen the law, prescribe severe punishments or establish Internal
Complaint Committees,” the publication writes. “What needs to be addressed is the
larger issue of the inherent gendered power relations of workspaces.” 

As such, despite efforts to tackle the problem, sexual harassment persists throughout
India, a country once described as the most dangerous country in the world to be a
woman. “India has shown utter disregard and disrespect for women … rape, marital
rapes, sexual assault and harassment, female infanticide has gone
unabated,” Manjunath Gangadhara, an Karnata state government official, said at the
time. “The [world’s] fastest growing economy and leader in space and technology is
shamed for violence committed against women.”

The recent case of a newborn girl buried alive served as a reminder of the sex
discrimination plaguing the country, which is missing 63 million girls and women thanks
to endemic sex-selective abortion (even though the practice is illegal in India) and
postnatal gender discrimination which leads to the deaths of 239,000 girls under the age
of five each year.

The risk of violence and harassment in the workplace contributes to a dearth of female
participation in the labour force in India, at considerable cost to the economy and to
India’s socioeconomic development. Without addressing both sexual harassment and
violence and the issues which allow for it to proliferate throughout the country, India will
continue to see its socioeconomic development held back – and the safety and welfare
of its girls and women
compromised. 

Source – Local circles https://www.localcircles.com/a/press/page/metoo-sexual-

harassment-in-india#.YJQqNLUzaUk
Recommendations

The Indian government should take urgent action—in collaboration

with state governments, civil society organizations, women’s rights
activists, trade unions, the private sector, and national and state
commissions for women to ensure the implementation of laws and
policies that address sexual harassment at the workplace. It should
also enact key reforms to protect freedom of speech and prevent abuse
of the law that results in silencing survivors of sexual harassment and
violence.

To the Central Government

 Enforce the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace
(Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, including
monitoring the creation and effective operation of committees,
carrying out inspections and investigations, sanctioning
employers who fail to comply, and ensuring access to remedies
for victims, including complaints mechanisms, and
compensation.

 Disseminate information about the SHe-Box and support an

independent audit to improve its effectiveness, including a time-
limit for resolution so complaints are not left pending.

 Publish the recommendations by the taskforce headed by the

home minister, formed in July 2019 to study and review the
POSH Act, and invite public comments.

 Ratify and implement the ILO Convention on Violence and

Harassment, 2019, No. 190, and take steps toward effective
prevention measures, including information campaigns, and
special attention to sectors with heightened risk of violence and
harassment.

 Ratify and implement the ILO Convention on Domestic Workers,

2011, No. 189.
  Allocate adequate budget and resources to ensure effective
implementation of the POSH Act.

To the Indian Parliament

 Repeal section 14 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at
Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013,
which provides for punishing a woman for filing a false or
malicious complaint.

 Repeal section 10 of the POSH Act, which provides that, on

receipt of a complaint of sexual harassment, conciliation must be
attempted between the complainant and respondent.

 Amend section 6(2) of the POSH Act to create sub-committees of

the Local Committees at block, taluka, and tehsil levels in rural
areas and wards, or municipalities in urban areas, to receive
complaints from women.

 Amend section 11 of the POSH Act to ensure that domestic

workers have the same access to time-bound justice in cases of
sexual harassment in the workplace through the Local
Committees, as do other workers.

 Repeal sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code to

eliminate the offense of criminal defamation. Defamation should
be solely a civil matter. In the meantime, ensure that criminal
defamation is not used as a legal response to complaints of
sexual harassment.

To the Central Government and State Governments

 Commission independent studies—both qualitative and
quantitative—on the prevalence and forms of sexual harassment
in the workplace in both the formal and informal sectors,
information about rights, perceived barriers to making
complaints, and factors that enable effective functioning of
committees. Disseminate the results widely.
  Provide trainings, create information materials, and conduct
public awareness campaigns to local government officials,
employers, and Resident Welfare Associations to increase
awareness about sexual harassment, fight victim-blaming
attitudes, and disseminate information on the rights of domestic
workers and responsibilities of employers and government.

 Improve training and accountability mechanisms to sensitize

police officers and judicial officials on the proper handling of
cases of sexual harassment, including recording complaints,
treating victims respectfully and referring them to services,
investigation techniques, and avoiding victim-blaming.

 Support the formation and free functioning of workers’

organizations, including trade unions, given the important role
they play in disseminating information about workers’ rights and
providing critical support to bring complaints forward.

 Ensure that SHe-Box is available in regional languages and is

accessible to all women workers, including informal workers.

Understanding the sexual assault victim’s feelings

It is important for you to understand that a person who has been sexually
assaulted may experience some or all of the following reactions:

 A feeling of being isolated and alone and out of touch with the rest of
the world.
 A belief that no one understands what they are experiencing.
 Confusion or an inability to think clearly or to concentrate.
 Physical symptoms such as headaches, nausea, stomach aches,
loss of appetite, fatigue.
 Changes in sleeping patterns and experiencing nightmares.
 A feeling of being dirty.
 A sense of grief and loss.
 Emotional reactions such as shame, guilt, anger, rage, fear.
  Not being able to stop thinking about the assault.
 Feeling responsible for the assault.
 A change in the way they feel about sex.
 An unwillingness to be touched by anyone.
 Difficulty in trusting others.
 Feeling unsafe when alone.
 Feeling nervous and anxious.
 A lack of self-confidence.

How you can help

You can help by:

 believing them
 listening and allowing them the opportunity to talk about the event in
their own time and in their own way
 not judging them
 spending time with them
 allowing them some private time
 reassuring them they are safe
 allowing them the opportunity to express their feelings
 not taking the person’s anger and feelings personally
 helping with some tasks such as minding the children or cooking, if
this is what they want
 not saying things such as ‘lucky it wasn’t worse’ – people who have
experienced a trauma are not consoled by these statements.
Toolkits for help
Navigating the Legal Process of Reporting Sexual
Violence
The decision to report a sexual assault can be extremely intimidating, but it is
also a critically important step to ensuring justice is served and preventing the
incident from reoccurring. However, the decision to report is a personal choice.
You should not feel pressured or coerced into filing a claim. If you decide to
report a sexual assault some steps can be taken to maximize your privacy and to
ensure that your claim is given the seriousness and professionalism it deserves.
Here is what you need to know:

https://metoomvmt.org/explore-healing/healing-toolkits/navigating-the-legal-
process-of-reporting-sexual-violence/

Masculinity, Male Privilege & Consent Toolkit

The purpose of this toolkit is to highlight, encourage, and guide men and
masculine people on issues of male privilege, sexual violence, and consent to
help create communities free of sexual violence and harm.

https://metoomvmt.org/explore-healing/healing-toolkits/masculinity-male-
privilege-consent-toolkit/

Who Do I Tell? How Do I Tell? Toolkit

For individuals who have experienced or know someone who has experienced
sexual assault, this toolkit provides question prompts and tips for deciding who to
disclose to, and how.

https://metoomvmt.org/explore-healing/healing-toolkits/who-do-i-tell-how-do-i-
tell-toolkit/

Coping with Triggers

A “trigger” is a trauma reminder. It can be a feeling, a smell, a place, a topic,
anything that engages our nervous system and prompts a survival response. It is
a surprise emotion, a memory that our body holds, one that may feel like it
comes out of nowhere.

https://metoomvmt.org/explore-healing/healing-toolkits/coping-with-triggers/

10 Tips For Men/Masculine People On Practicing Consent: 14

1. KNOW WHAT CONSENT IS AND HOW TO GIVE AND RECEIVE IT
2. NAME WHAT ALL PARTIES INVOLVED WANT & DO NOT WANT
3. CHECK IN ON EXPECTATIONS
4. GET SPECIFIC
5. CONSENT EXPIRES, VERBALLY CHECK-IN SOMETIMES
6. ASK BEFORE A SHIFT
7. CONSENT ISN’T JUST ABOUT SEX
8. PROPS, PROTECTION, AND TECHNOLOGY
9. IGNORANCE IS NOT BLISS
10. ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSFORMATION

Sources –

1. https://metoomvmt.org/explore-healing/healing-toolkits/

2. https://www.hrw.org/report/2020/10/14/no-metoo-women-us/poor-
enforcement-indias-sexual-harassment-law

3. https://www.hrw.org/report/2020/10/14/no-metoo-women-us/poor-
enforcement-indias-sexual-harassment-law

4. https://www.localcircles.com/a/press/page/metoo-sexual-harassment-in-
india#.YJQqNLUzaUk